Sequence switch



Nov. 8, 1960 c. A. PARKE 2,959,658

SEQUENCE SWITCH Filed June 4, 1958 s Shets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. CHARLESAPARKER MAW ATTORNEY C. A. PARKER SEQUENCE SWITCH Nov. 8, 1960 FiledJune 4, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. CHARLES A.PARKER BY d 0%/(ATTORNEY Nov. 8, 1960 c. A. PARKER 2,959,658

SEQUENCE SWITCH Filed June 4, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 FIG.8

III'IlllllllllIlllllllllllIlllllllIlllllllIlllllllllllllIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIllllllllCHARLES A. PARKER ATTORNEY a 9 INVENTOR. Ll.

United States Patent Cfifice I 2,959,658 Patented Nov. 8, 1960 2,959,658SEQUENCE SWITCH Charles A. Parker, East Orange, N.J., assignor to MonroeCalculating Machine Company, Orange, N.J., a corporation of DelawareFiled June 4, 1958, Ser. No. 739,827

17 Claims. (Cl. 200-4166) This invention relates to electrical switches.More particularly, the invention relates to a switch including means forsequentially closing and holding closed a series of contacts.

In certain apparatus, such as exemplified by the disclosure ofapplicants co-pending application Serial No. 730,094, filed on April 22,1958, a plurality of electrical circuits respectively include a seriesof contacts. These contacts are included in a switch operating inaccordance with the switch of the present invention. It will beunderstood, however, that this is only one utility of the invention andthat its use is not restricted to such apparatus. To the contrary, theinvention has equal utility in other apparatus wherein the operationrequires the sequential closure of a series of circuit contacts andparticularly where it is desirable to hold the contacts closed.

It is accordingly the primary object of the invention to provide aswitch wherein a series of contacts are sequentially closed and heldclosed in a manner which causes minimum wear on the contact surfaces andyet which insures good electrical conduction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a switch wherein a commonconductor is most efficiently adapted to sequentially close and holdclosed a series of contacts.

Another and more specific object of the invention is to provide a switchwherein a common conductor is particularly adapted to sequentially closeand hold closed a linear series of contacts.

Another more specific object of the invention is to provide a switchwherein a common conductor is particularly adapted to sequentially closeand hold closed an arcuate series of contacts.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description with reference to the accompanying drawings inwhich:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the switch.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the switch with the parts in normalposition.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the switch with the parts in operatedposition.

Fig. 4 is a section taken of the line 44 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the switch.

Fig. 6 is a front view of a modified form of the switch with partsbroken away and the parts in normal position.

Fig. 7 is a side elevation of the modified form of the switch with theparts in normal position.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of the modified form of the switch with theparts in operated position.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary bottom end view of the modified form of theswitch.

in a preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1-5, thevarious elements of the sequence switch are mounted on a baes plate 1 ofinsulating material. Any strong insulating material such as fiber filledphenolic may be employed for plate 1 and for other insulating members ofthe switch described later. A series of resilient conductive arms 2(Figs. 1, 4, 5) in the form of flat strips are secured between a pair ofclamping plates 3 and 4, also of insulating material and mountedlongitudinally adjacent the rear of base plate 1. The rear ends of arms2 extend through a vertical spacing plate 5 of insulating materialmounted at the rear of plate 1 and each is connected with a lead 6.Resilient arms 2 extend forwardly and each engages the head of a contactpin 8 which extends upwardly through a suitable opening in a spacingplate 9 of insulating material which is raised from base plate 1 by aplate 10 also of insulating material.

A slide 13 is mounted in a pair of brackets 14 and 15 of insulatingmaterial above and adjacent the front edge of plate 1. To further secureslide 13, a guide roller 16 is mounted on a bracket 17 at the rear ofplate 1 and extends forwardly above and in engagement with the upperedge of the slide. A roller 18 of insulating material, preferably nylon,is mounted intermediate the ends of slide 13 with its axis parallel toarms 2 and in the vertical plane of the series of contact pins 8.

A conductive band 19 of flexible material is attached to the peripheryof roller 18 and, from the point of attachment, extends counterclockwiseand to the right end' of plate 1 where it is secured to bracket 15.Attached at the right terminal end of band 19 is a lead 20.

Slide 13, as later described, is normally positioned toward the right(Figs. 1, 2, 5) with roller 18 and band 19 immediately to (the right ofthe rightmost contact pin 8. To prevent buckling of the rightwardextension of band 1h, the lower edge of a pressure plate 22 ofinsulating material, which is attached to arm 13, engages the upper faceof the band.

Roller 13 is provided with a hub 18. An operating band or cable 23 isattached at one end to the periphery of hub 1&1 and from the point ofattachment extends clockwise and to the left of base plate 1. A spring24 is attached to the left end of cable 23 and therefore urges roller 18and slide 13 toward the left. Slide 13, however, is normally held towardthe right by a rack 25 having a shoulder 25a which engages the left endof the slide.

As fully disclosed in applicants aforenoted co-pending applicationSerial No. 730,094, rack 25 is operated in unison with a segmental rack26 (Fig. 2) of an accounting machine. Rack 26 is a replica of thedifferentially operable registering actuator racks of the machine but isnon-registering. Upon each cycle of operation of the accounting machine,rack 26 is rocked counterclockwise a fixed distance and restored. Rack26 engages an intermediate gear 27 which meshes with rack 25. Therefore,during each machine cycle, rack 25 will be moved toward the left andrestored.

Upon leftward movement of rack 25, slide 13 and roller 13 will no longerbe restrained in rightward position and spring 24 will therefore berendered effective. Cable 23 is wound in such direction on hub 18a as toimpart, by the leftward urge of spring 24, a clockwise torque to roller18. Band 19 encircles roller 18 in the direction opposite to that ofcable 23 on hub 18a, and therefore the torque will hold the rollerclockwise to take up any slack between the band and the roller and toinsure that the band will be held taut from its point of attachment atthe right end of plate 1. With band 19 taut, the force of spring 24 willbe transmitted to the periphery of roller 18. This force will be equaland opposite to the force transmitted to the periphery of hub 18a.However, because of the greater diameter of roller -13 with respect tohub 18a, the roller will be rotated counterclockwise, thereby movingtoward the left and unrolling band 19 while at the same time cable 23will be further wound upon hub 13a as shown in Fig. 3.

As roller 18 moves toward the left, hand 19 will successively engagepins 8- which will yield by the resiliency of arms 2. Thus a circuitconnection will be made between each lead 6 andcornmon lead 20. It willbe noted that as each pin 8 is engaged, there will be a slight wipingaction with contact strip 19 thereby insuring a good conducting surfacewithout causing undue wear as occurs in conventional sliding contacts.Further more, because of the rolling action, each engaged pin will bedecelerated as it reaches its full depressed position thus eliminatingthe possibility of vibration and poor conduction. Also, it will beobserved that the clockwise torque imparted to roller 13, as the forceof spring 24 diminishes, will be constantly proportional to the forcewhich rotates roller 18 counterclockwise. This insures maximumeiriciency of spring 24 to maintain the tautness of band 19 and torotate roller 18 to engage the band with pins 8. Furthermore, pressureplate 22 engages the band above the engaged pins to the right of roller13 (Fig. 3) preventing buckling of the band to further insure positivecontact. As rack 25 is restored toward the right, slide 13 and roller 18will be likewise restored to disengage pins 8 from band 19 in reversesequence.

In the modified form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 6-9, theswitch is adapted to be operated by direct connection with segmentalrack 2a which, as before noted, is rocked a fixed distance during eachcycle of the differentially operable actuator racks of an accountingmachine. The operating principles of the modified form are substantiallythe same as those of the embodiment of Figs. 1-5 and corresponding partswill be identifled, where practical, by like numerals with the suffix(a).

The switch includes a segmental base plate in of insulating materialwhich may be mounted on the machine frame (not shown) in any suitablemanner such as by one or more studs 39. A series of radially extendingresilient conductive arms 2a in the form of flat strips are secured atthe outer edge of plate Ia between a pair of arcuate insulating clampingplates 3a and in (Fig. 9). The outer ends of arms 2a are each connectedwith a lead 6a. The inner ends of arms let each engage the head of acontact pin 8a which extends through one of an arcuate series ofopenings in a spacing plate 9a of insulating material spaced from baseplate 1a by a plate 10a also of insulating material.

Pins 8a are located on the arc of a circle having its center at the axisof a shaft 31 on which segmental rack 26 is pivotally mounted. Asdescribed in the aforenoted application Serial No. 730,094, rack 26 isnormally restrained in clockwise position (Fig. 7) by a dog 32 whichengages a stud 33 on said rack.

Integral with rack 26 is a hub 26a, and mounted on a spindle 34 on hub26a is a roller 18a of insulating material. The sides of roller llda areradial with respect to the axis of shaft 31 and is therefore so taperedthat it is adapted for rolling movement along the arc of contact pins8a. Spindle 34, which is fixed in hub 26a, is inclined outwardly frombase plate 1a. The location of spindle 34 in hub 26a and its inclinationis such that the peripheral surface of roller 18a is parallel to andimmediately adjacent the face of plate 9a through which pins 8a extend.

An arcuate conductive band 19a of flexible material is attached toroller 18a and, from the point of attachment, extends clockwise aroundsaid roller and clockwise (Figs. 7, 8) along plate 9a to the edge ofbase plate 112 Where it is secured and attached to a lead 2011.

When rack 26 is in normal clockwise position (Fig. 7), roller 18a andband 19a will be located immediately clockwise of the clockwisemost pin8a. To prevent buckling of the portion of band 10a which extendsclockwise from roller 18a, an insulating pressure plate 22a mounted onan arm 26b of rack 26 is adapted to engage the face of that portion ofthe band.

Roller 18a is provided with a hub 1801. Hub 18a extends between roller18a and hub 26a into which it is recessed. An operating cable 23a isattached at one end to the periphery of hub 18a and from the point ofattachment extends counterclockwise and then counterclockwise a shortdistance around hub 26m. A spring 24a is attached to the end of cable23a and continues counterclockwise around hub 26a to a straightenedposition where it is secured to the machine frame. Therefore, because ofthe attachment of spring 24a with hub 18a, hub 26a and rack 26 will bebiased counterclockwise (Figs. 7, 8) on shaft 3-1.

Upon each machine cycle, as disclosed in application No. 730,094, aframe (not shown) upon which dog 32 is mounted, is rockedcounterclockwise and restored. Rack 26 and hub 26a therefore will bereleased for like movement under the urge of spring 24a. Cable 23a iswound in such direction on hub 18a as to impart, by the counterclockwiseurge of spring 24a, a counterclockwise torque to roller 18a. Band 19::encircles roller 18a in the direction opposite to that of cable 230. onhub 13a, and therefore the torque will hold the roller counterclockwiseto take up any slack between the band and the roller and to insure thatthe band will be held taut from its point of attachment on base platein.

With band 19a taut, the force of spring 24a will be transmitted to theperiphery of roller 18a. This force will be equal and opposite to theforce transmitted to the periphery of hub 18a. However, because of thegreater diameter of roller 18a with respect to hub 18a, the roller willbe rotated clockwise on spindle 34 thereby rolling in counterclockwisedirection (Figs. 7, 8) with hub 26a and rack 26 under the urge of spring24a. Band 19a will therefore be unrolled while at the same time cable23a will be further wound on hub 18a as shown in Fig. 8.

As roller 18a moves counterclockwise with hub 26a and rack 26, band 1%will successively engage pins 8a which will yield by the resiliency ofarms 2a. Thus a circuit connection will be made between each lead 6::and common lead 20a. During this operation, pressure plate 22a willengage band 19a above engaged pins 8a to prevent buckling of the bandthereby insuring positive contact. As rack 26 is restored, roller 18awill be likewise restored and pins 8a will be disengaged from band 19:!in reverse sequence.

It will be obvious that both rollers 13 and 18a, of the two embodimentsof the invention, may be controlled by suitable reciprocally operablemeans other than that herein disclosed. Such means may be eithermanually or automatically operable. It will be understood therefore thatthe aforedescribed controls of the switch by rack 26 are onlyillustrative of practical embodiments of the invention which thereforeis to be restricted only as necessitated by the scope of the appendedclaims.

I claim:

1. In an electrical switch: a series of contacts; a roller; a flexiblecontact band attached at one end to the periphery of said roller andnormally at least partially en circling said roller; means forrestraining the other end of said band; and means for unrolling saidband to successively engage and maintain engagement of said band withsaid contacts.

2. In an electrical switch: a linear row of contacts; a roller; aflexible contact band attached at one end to the periphery of saidroller and normally at least partially encircling said roller; means forrestraining the other end of said band; and means for unrolling saidband to successively engage and maintain engagement of said band withsaid contacts.

3. In an electrical switch: a series of contacts; a roller; means forlocating said roller at one end of said series of contacts; a flexiblecontact band attached at one end to the periphery of said roller,passing around said roller and fixed at its other end at said one end ofsaid series of contacts; and means for moving said roller along saidcontacts thereby unrolling said band to successively engage said bandwith said contacts.

4. In an electrical switch; a linear row of contacts;.a

roller; means for locating said roller linearly from one end of saidrow; a flexible contact band attached at one end to the periphery ofsaid roller, passing around said roller and fixed at its other endlinearly from said one end of said row; and means for moving said rolleralong said row thereby unrolling said band to successively engage saidband with said contacts.

5. In an electrical switch: a linear row of contacts; a roller; aflexible contact band attached at one end to the periphery of saidroller, passing around Said roller and fixed at its other end linearlyfrom one end of said row; resilient means operable to move said rolleralong said row from said fixed end of said band thereby unrolling saidband to successively engage said contacts; and reciprocably operablecontrol means for restoring said roller against the urge of saidresilient means and for releasing said roller to permit operation ofsaid resilient means.

6. In an electrical switch: a linear row of contacts; a roller; aflexible contact band attached at one end to the periphery of saidroller, passing around said roller and fixed at its other end linearlyfrom one end of said row; and means for transmitting a torque to saidroller in the direction to hold said band tightly thereon and to rotatesaid roller in the opposite direction thereby engaging said bandsuccessively with said contacts.

7. The invention according to claim 6 wherein said means fortransmitting said torque and for rotating said roller urges said rollerlinearly along said contacts away from said fixed end of said band.

8. The invention according to claim 6 wherein said means fortransmitting said torque, for rotating and urging said roller includesresiliently operable means.

9. In an electrical switch: a linear row of contacts; a roller includinga hub; a flexible band attached at one end to the periphery of saidroller, passing around said roller in a given direction and fixed at itsother end linearly from one end of said row; a cable attached at one endto the periphery of said hub, passing around said hub in the oppositedirection and extending linearly toward the other end of said row; andmeans for pulling said cable thereby moving said rol'ler along said rowand unrolling said band to successively engage said contacts.

10. The invention according to claim 9; wherein said means for pullingsaid cable is resilient.

11. The invention according to claim 10; including means for restrainingsaid roller in position adjacent said one end of said row andreciprocably operable to permit operation of said resilient means.

12. The invention according to claim 9; wherein said contacts areresiliently yieldable.

13. In an electrical switch: an arcuate series of contacts; a rollerhaving its sides tapered to adapt it for rolling movement along the arcof said series of contacts; means for locating said roller at one end ofsaid series of contacts; an arcuate and flexible contact band attachedat one end to the periphery of said roller, passing around said rollerand fixed at its other end at said one end of said series of contacts;and means for moving said roller along said contacts thereby unrollingsaid band to successively engage said band with said contacts.

14. In anelectrical switch: an arcuate series of contacts; a rollerhaving its sides tapered to adapt it for rolling movement along the arcof said contacts; a support for said roller pivotally mounted at thecenter of the arc of said contacts for moving said roller along saidarc; re-

silient means for rocking said support; means for remain ing saidsupport against the urge of said resilient means to locate said rollerat one end of said series of contacts; an arcuate and flexible contactband attached at one end to the periphery of said roller, passing aroundsaid roller and fixed at its other end at said one end of said series ofcontacts; and means for releasing said restraining means to permit saidsupport to move said roller along said contacts thereby unrolling saidband to successively engage said band with said contacts and forrestoring said restraining means.

15. The invention according to claim 14; said resilient means forrocking said support being attached to said roller.

16. In an electrical switch: an arcuate series of contacts; a rollerhaving its sides tapered to adapt it for rolling movement along the arcof said contacts and including a hub; a support for said rollerpivotally mounted at the center of the arc of said contacts for movingsaid roller along said arc; an arcuate and flexible contact bandattached at one end to the periphery of said roller, passing around saidroller in a given direction and fixed at its other end at one end ofsaid series of contacts; a cable attached at one end to the periphery ofsaid hub, passing around said hub in the opposite direction andextending toward the other end of said series of contacts; and resilient means for pulling said cable thereby rocking said support andmoving said roller along said contacts to unroll said band andsuccessively engage said contacts therewith.

17. The invention according to claim 16; including means for restrainingsaid support against the urge of said resilient means to locate saidroller adjacent said one end of said series of contacts and reciprocablyoperable to permit operation of said resilient means.

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